Cleveland Guardians vs Kansas City Royals Preview
From Progressive Field in Cleveland, we have the Royals and Guardians facing off in an AL Central matchup. Monday’s forecasted temperature is 71 degrees with broken clouds. First pitch is at 1:10 PM ET.
Kansas City is currently on a two-game losing streak and is 72-58 overall, while the Guardians are leading the AL Central with a record of 75-55. Nick Sandlin is starting for the Guardians, and the Royals are sending Cole Ragans to the mound. Cleveland is favored at +102 on the money line, and the over/under line is at 8.5 runs. This game can be seen on BSGL.
Check out BetCoco for Cleveland Guardians – Kansas City Royals odds
Cleveland Guardians vs. Kansas City Royals Trends and Key Stats
- Across their last five road games, the Royals are 4-1. This includes going 4-1 vs. the runline.
- On the other side, the Guardians have gone 1-4 (SU) and 2-3 in their previous five home contests.
- In their last ten games as the favorite, the Royals have a straight-up record of 7-3 and a runline record of 7-3.
- The Guardians have a 5-5 record vs. the runline and a 7-3 straight-up record in their last ten games as the underdog.
Cleveland Guardians vs Kansas City Royals Prediction
The Royals will be looking to get back on track after closing out their series vs. the Phillies with an 11-3 loss. Kansas City was actually the slight favorite at home going into the game but fell behind big early, as the Phillies scored five times in the 2nd.
Seth Lugo took the loss for the Royals, going only 5 1/3 innings, and giving up five earned runs on 11 hits. Kansas City’s offense scored their only three runs in the 3rd inning. MJ Melendez, Bobby Witt Jr., and Maikel Garcia each had two hits. Melendez hit a homer.
Kansas City is on the road today vs. the Guardians, and they are looking to pick up a win to close the three-game gap between them and the Guardians in the AL Central. The Royals lost the final two games of their series vs. the Phillies, and they are 72-58 overall. So far, they have been great against other teams in the AL Central, going 26-13.
The Royals have won four straight games on the road, and they are 31-30 on the road this season. As the favorite, Kansas City has gone 42-25 and 30-33 as the underdog. This season, they have an overall series record of 19-21-1.
The Royals have been a solid run line bet this season, going 73-57 overall. They have been particularly strong on the road, where they are 34-27 against the run line. They have covered the run line in four straight road games and have an average run margin of +0.7 runs per game away from home.
The Kansas City Royals are on the road today against the Cleveland Guardians, with the over/under line set at 8.5 runs. The Royals have an over/under record of 60-66 on the season, and their games have averaged a combined 9.0 runs per game. Their games have had an average over/under line of 9 runs, and when the line has been set at 8.5 runs, their over/under record is 14-23. The over has hit in each of their last three games.
Kansas City is sending left-hander Cole Ragans to the mound today vs. the Guardians. He has made 26 starts this season and has a record of 10-8 with a 3.31 ERA. Ragans’ WHIP for the season is currently 1.15. In his 26 appearances, he has turned in 17 quality starts and is averaging 10.81 strikeouts per nine innings. Ragans’ last outing came vs. the Angels, where he took the loss, giving up four earned runs in five innings of work. Before that, he had won three straight starts.
Heading into today’s game, the Royals are averaging 4.8 runs per game, which is good for 8th in the league. They have been even better at home, putting up 5.2 runs per contest. Overall, they are one of the league’s top home run hitting teams, and they also have a strong team batting average of .257. One area they have struggled is in drawing walks, as they are just 25th in the league in that category.
Salvador Perez and Bobby Witt Jr. have been two of the Royals’ top power threats this season, with Perez having 23 homers and Witt Jr. sitting at 26. Witt Jr. has also been one of the league’s top run producers, as his 93 RBIs are 6th best in the league. Witt Jr. comes into the game with a batting average of .347, while Perez is batting .276.
The Guardians’s offense was carried by Jhonkensy Noel in their most recent game vs. the Rangers. Noel went only 1/3, but that one hit was a home run, and he drove in three runs. The Guardians also scored a run in the 2nd inning and added another in the 7th to pick up the 4-2 win. Cleveland was the -126 favorite at home going into the game.
Matthew Boyd started for the Guardians, going six innings and giving up just one earned run, and picking up the win. He only had four strikeouts in the outing and issued just one walk. Emmanuel Clase closed things out in the 9th, picking up the save.
Cleveland is hosting the Royals today with an overall record of 75-55, which has them leading the AL Central by three games. The Guardians are 21-17 against other teams in the AL Central. They have won two straight games, closing out their series vs. the Rangers with a win. So far, they are 40-21 at home and 35-34 on the road.
The Royals are 72-58 overall, putting them 3 games behind the Guardians in the AL Central. They are 2nd in the division and have gone 19-20 against other AL Central teams. Kansas City lost two of three in their series vs. the Mariners and are just 4-6 over their last ten games.
The Guardians have been a solid run line bet at home this season, going 29-32. They have a run line record of 64-66 overall, with an average run margin of 0.6 runs per game. They have covered the run line in two straight games and have a run line record of 35-34 on the road.
Today’s over/under line of 8.5 runs is right on the nose for the Cleveland Guardians, as their combined run average for the season is also 8.5 runs per game. The Guardians have played 25 games this season with over/under lines set at 8.5 runs, going 19-16 in those contests. Overall, Cleveland has played 70 games with lower lines than today’s, going 37-33 in those games.
Cleveland is starting right-hander Nick Sandlin today vs. the Royals, and he has made 56 appearances out of the bullpen this season. Sandlin’s record is 7-0, and he has an ERA of 3.88 to go along with a WHIP of 1.17. This year, opponents are batting .202 vs. Sandlin. He most recently pitched on August 22nd, where he went two-thirds of an inning, giving up two earned runs on one hit. Sandlin didn’t give up a homer in that outing, but he has allowed a homer in three of his last four appearances. The right-hander has a walk in each of his last three outings.
Jose Ramirez and Josh Naylor have been the Guardians’ top power threats this season, as Ramirez’s 33 homers are 5th in the league and Naylor’s 28 long balls have him 8th in the MLB. Ramirez also has the 2nd most RBIs in the league this season, while Naylor is 7th in that category. Over his last eight games, Jhonkensy Noel has gone 8/25 with three homers and six RBIs.
For the season, the Guardians are averaging 4.6 runs per game, which is 13th in the league. They have been a better offensive team at home, averaging 5 runs per contest. Overall, they are batting .237, which is 16th in the league, and have the 13th most home runs in the league. As a team, they are 3rd in the league in strikeouts.
Our predicted final score for this game is 7-6 in favor of the Guardians. With the Guardians at +102 on the money line, we see this as a great value pick for today’s game.
Looking at the starting pitchers, Cole Ragans is projected to finish with five strikeouts, which has him ranked 12th among starters. However, we have his final line at 3 earned runs, which is the third best among starters.
Offensively, the Royals are projected to finish with 11 hits, compared to the Guardians at 11. The Guardians are projected to finish with nine strikeouts, compared to the Royals at 11.
For a potential payout of +102, we recommend locking in a bet on the Guardians to win.
Cleveland Guardians vs Kansas City Royals Betting Tips
- Take the Royals on the moneyline
- The Guardians are also our pick on the run line at +1.5
- Projecting a combined 13 runs, we like the over
Cleveland Guardians Injury Report
| Player | Status | Injury |
|---|---|---|
| Carlos Carrasco | Out | Hip |
| Alex Cobb | Out | Finger |
| Sam Hentges | Out | Shoulder |
| Shane Bieber | Out | Elbow |
| Trevor Stephan | Out | Elbow |
| James Karinchak | Out | Shoulder |
Kansas City Royals Injury Report
| Player | Status | Injury |
|---|---|---|
| Hunter Renfroe | Out | Hamstring |
| Hunter Harvey | Out | Back |
| Dan Altavilla | Out | Oblique |
| Josh Taylor | Out | Biceps |
| Kyle Wright | Out | Shoulder |
